Mixed-use apartment building proposed for Central Avenue near 34th Street
/A team of developers has closed on the purchase of a large shopping plaza located at the crossroads of Central Avenue and 34th Street in St. Petersburg’s Union Central District.
St. Pete-based real estate developers Blake Investment Partners and Eastman Equity along with Virginia-based developer Kettler have closed on the Central Plaza Shopping Center at 3365 Central Avenue for $13.3 million.
The three-acre shopping center occupies two city blocks along Central Avenue between 32nd Street and 34th Street. Currently, the retail center has 73,200 leasable square feet and is home to several tenants including a Family Dollar, Hibbett Sports, Citi Trends, and Octapharma.
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A vacant site across from Lealman Elementary School will become a permanently affordable townhome community for 26 local families.
Habitat for Humanity Tampa Bay Gulfside and local officials gathered Thursday at 4000 58th Avenue North to mark the start of infrastructure work for Lealman Heights, a two-story townhome development at the corner of 58th Avenue North and 40th Street North.
The 26 townhomes are part of a broader 57-home Habitat community in Lealman, which will also include 31 single-family homes now under construction.
“Lealman Heights represents more than the construction of new homes,” Mike Sutton, president and CEO of Habitat for Humanity Tampa Bay Gulfside, said at the groundbreaking. “It represents opportunity, stability, and a brighter future for local families who have worked hard and dreamed of the chance to own a home in the community they love.”
The 26 townhomes will each span 1,500 square feet and include three bedrooms and a garage. The homes will be priced between $240,000 and $280,000, based on a buyer’s income.
High Point Engineering and G2 Design are leading the project team.
Habitat expects vertical construction to begin in summer 2027.